Insitu metal mining wherein underground ore bodies are leached of their metal values is known to those skilled in the art, as evidenced by the U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,309,141; 3,623,769; 3,841,705; 3,860,289; 3,792,903; 3,115,388; 3,089,750; 3,096,969; 3,360,346; 3,339,979; 3,835,213; 3,836,476; 3,880,980; 2,954,218; 3,823,981; 3,825,649; 2,848,300; 3,488,162; 3,309,140; 3,966,872; 4,007,964; 3,212,239; 3,600,040; 2,850,270; 2,847,275; 2,835,552; 2,860,031; 2,812,233; 2,812,232; and 2,879,646. Often the underground ore body is rubblized by explosives and the like so as to increase the surface area between the leaching fluid and the valuable ore deposit. It is known to recover uranium from uranium bearing ores by leaching with dilute sulphuric acid which brings the uranium into solution as uranium sulphate. Additives, such as sodium chlorate, manganese dioxide, or ferric salt accelerate the leaching process. There are many patents which teach the leaching of uranium from its ore as found in Class 23 of the U.S. Patent Office, of which U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,848,300; 3,488,162; 3,825,649; 3,880,980; 3,836,476; and 3,115,388 are cited for example only.
In many instances, underground leaching and the subsequent production of the mother liquid cannot successfully be carried out because the surrounding underground strata is porous or else contains cracks and fissures; and accordingly, the expensive acid leaching fluid is lost to the surrounding formations. Similarly, existing formation fluid, such as water dilutes the leaching fluid, impairing its effectiveness, or the leaching fluid constitutes a potential pollution to the formation.
Those skilled in the art of borehole forming operations are acquainted with methods by which a borehole can be slanted in any desired direction so as to achieve a borehole which is vertical at the upper end thereof and has a lower end turned horizontally in a given direction. In fact, those skilled in this art can cause the drill bit to make a U-turn, thereby causing the borehole to extend back up to the surface of the earth, should such an expedient be desirable to accomplish.
Those skilled in the art of borehole formation also are aware of the various different techniques to employ in order to pump cementatious material and the like downhole to a specific location so that any desired underlying strata can be hydraulically fractured or "squeezed" with cement. That is, an isolating barrier can be pumped downhole to a specific location and the fluid pumped out into the surrounding strata where it subsequently hardens and forms a barrier through which fluids cannot flow.
There are many uranium ore deposits located 500 to 1,000 feet below the surface of the ground. The criticality of uranium respective to our national defense and civilian energy needs has caused the cost thereof to soar and consequently it has become feasible to employ new techniques in order to retrieve this valuable substance from the earth. The subject of the present invention is a unique process for the recovery of uranium ore which includes employment of the above recited techniques in an unobvious manner, and reduces pollution potential to the natural formation surrounding the ore body.